Campus Connection

Women’s Chorus, Concert Choir to perform Easter, ‘Ava Maria,’ other works

Two UW-La Crosse choral ensembles will sing a variety of “awe-inspiring texts adorned in splendid choral settings,” according to Music Professor Gary Walth, director of choral music. The Women’s Chorus and Concert Choir will perform at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 7, in Annett Recital Hall, Center for the Arts, 333 N 16th St. The UWL Women’s Chorus will begin the concert with settings of two joyful Easter texts, one by Romantic composer Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy. Under the direction of Janette Hanson, the ensemble will also perform two works by widely-known American composer Joan Szymko, the award-winning artistic director of the Portland-based Aurora Chorus. The Women’s Chorus will also perform her composition, “Viritidas,” based on a text written by Medieval Abbess Hildegaarde von Bingen. The 45-member Concert Choir will open the second half of the concert with two motets in the late Renaissance style, the first by Johann Christoph Bach, Johann Sebastian Bach’s cousin; and the second, “Ave Maria,” by Romantic composer Anton Bruckner. Walth, the conductor of the choir, has selected his “Three Spring Songs,” settings of three poems written in 1992 by John Webster, William Shakespeare and him, for another featured piece. Guest pianist and UWL graduate Jason Meissner will be the pianist on these pieces. Three diverse pieces will close out the choir’s performance: “He Never Failed Me Yet,” a gospel piece also featuring Meissner at the keyboard; James Erb’s arrangement of “Shenandoah;” and a new choir-audience finale by Walth, “When We All Sing Together.” The concert is free and open to the public. No tickets are needed. Seating is limited in the Annett Recital Hall and will go fast as the performance is one of the required concerts for music appreciation students. The concert was originally scheduled for the Roncalli-Newman Center, which is why the program includes more sacred music. Renovation of the recital hall was delayed so the choirs are able to sing in their regular venue. If you go— Who: The Women’s Chorus and Concert Choir What: Concert When: 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 7 Where: Annett Recital Hall, Center for the Arts, 333 N 16th St. Admission: Free; seating is limited.